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Before the Fall
It appears a threat was close to home. As one of her guild's most capable fighters and a recently christened S-Class Mage, the job was hers to evaluate and if necessary eliminate the threat. The wind wiped through her raven hair as she navigated the terrain. Her eyes shown as a steel blue, a sign of the woman's resolve when it came to those who threatened her loved ones. Nevertheless Aojiro refused to let anger cloud her judgement, given the unknown nature of the assailant. Until she came in range that is. Ao could feel the foul energy that could only be classified as a demon. An old and powerful one at that. Causing her blood to surge in excitement. Perhaps it was a sign of the future. Though such an observation would be lost on the currently 16 year old girl. Coming to a stop, she prepared to release a potent breath attack at the demon only to pause. Realizing there was another individual involved. One that was certifiably human yet holding her on against the vengeful adversary. As Ao prepared to intervene, she watched the young woman brutally execute the old soul. Causing befuddlement on Ao's part. "That's not possible, she's not a Devil Slayer." Ao mused, her mood salty after watching the target be dealt with. "You know, that's my job you took there," she called out the victor, before jumping from her viewpoint to the wide open clearing. The breeze picked up once more, carrying a chill that explained Aojiro's scarf; they were in Northern Fiore after all. "How did you complete such a maneuver?" Ao pressed further as she continued approaching the lady, unfazed though duly impressed with her display of prowess. The old demon screamed, its eye and most of its face had been cut open with a scythe. It charged fowards again only to stop at its opponents hand, being blown back by an unknown force. The demon roared again charging back at the girl before crumpling to the ground, its guts beggining to spull out of large cuts on its stomach. The demons oppnent smiled producing a small objects that spewed flames onto the demon, roasting it to death, leaving only bones. The girl who had been opposing it smiled. She adjusted the bow in her short silver hair and wiped some of blood off her face, though it did match her eyes. "Sorry about that." The 19 year old replied. "I mean technically it was anyones kill right, the important thing is it's dead." The girl responded with a small smile. "Well it was pretty simple really, I just murdered it. I mean this one was rowdy sure but I've killed ones way past this little guy. Dorothy Blackwell, Exorcist." She spoke, offering a handshake to the girl. Aojiro shrugged. She supposed the girl had a point. Ao would have to be faster next time. Though she had been itching to utilize her magic on the target that it was specifically designed to kill. After all, Aojiro wanted to build up her strength and not be caught unprepared when facing those who had murdered her family. Stepping closer, she admired Dorothy's handiwork, noting that the girl knew what she was doing. "So you consider this one a little guy. Figures." she muttered aloud. She then took Dorothy's hand, completing the handshake. "Aojiro Ruri, S-Class Mage of Northern Light." Ao responded warmly, her gaze shifting from a steel blue to wolf grey before settling on the color of a clear sky. "So what brings you out to these parts?" the woman asked the Exorcist. Part of was curious about the nature of Dorothy's magic and weaponry given its capability to kill demons. At the same time she wondered if her parents were watching over her and her little brother, wherever they were in the afterlife. She sighed, her mood turning melancholy as she awaited Dorothy's answer, her eyes darkening to storm grey in the process. "Pleasure to meet you Aojiro." Dorothy spoke happily, ignoring her previous statement. "Well I travel all around hunting demons for fun and whatnot. I was just passing by and I noticed there was one around here. I couldn't help myself and I slaughtered it." Dorothy simply replied, her red eyes flickering in the sunlight. Then she stopped her movement and began sniffing the air a bit. She moved around slightly sensing each direction before pinpointing her sense. She looked directly back at Aojiro, staring into her eyes. "Wow I almost didn't sense it cause it's super weak but you're a demon aren't you. Wait no no that's not right. A half demon that's what you are." Dorothy spoke aloud, happy that she pinpointed it. Her senses for demons were still growing but they were still extremely strong. "So what's a half demon like you doing in a guild all the way out here?" The words left her mouth calmly with no ill intent. She didn't seem to mind the fact that Aojiro was a part demon. "Sounds like fun." Aojiro responded with a hint of curiosity. The girl's mention of demon hunting nevertheless reminded her of a task she needed to complete; she already had the coordinates courtesy of an acquaintance. All that remained was finding and killing that bastard, preventing him from interfering with remaining family and saving others from the heartbreak she endured. Such thoughts came to a roaring stop upon Dorothy's next proclamation however. "What do you mean? I'm not a demon. Or a half-demon for that matter." Ao said, her confusion clearly displayed in her face and posture. Frankly the girl had no idea where Doro had found such an idea. Then she remembered her magic. "Oh, that must be a side effect of my magic type." Aojiro said aloud. Even as part of her gave some thought to Dorothy's words. "Well, doing what guilds and their members are meant to do. Take jobs and fulfill contracts. At least my guild doesn't have to listen to that pompous Magic Council." she continued, a grin audible in her voice. It was one of her favorite parts about her guild's independent existence. Speaking of which, I have to take a leave of absence soon, Aojiro thought to herself, The longer I wait the more likely he is to escape. Such sentiment brought her to a brooding state. "No that's not it. Magic and birth are different. If it was your magic that was doing it would definitely feel different, like a corrupted soul. You are purely half demon for sure." Dorothy spoke confidently. "Whether you chose to believe me or not is on you. However I've met half demons before and I can tell you you're one of them." Finally leaving the subject alone Dorothy moved back to her other question. "Oh so you guys are an independent guild then, that's always a fun thing. No rules or regulations to follow and freedom all around." Dorothy was intrigued by this girl. Had she never known that she was a demon? It was possible seeing as most people wouldn't just up and tell their kids that they were part demon. It was a generally frowned upon thing in society. She had met one demon in particular that just traveled the world as a nomad, hiding his existence to live peacefully. He was the only one to ever escape her grasp. That this girl insisted upon that notion began to annoy Aojiro greatly. "No. That's not true. You must be mistaken...." Aojiro trailed off. She recalled her meeting with Sub-Zero, him showing her the properties of Devil Synchronization, proving himself to be a fellow devil slayer. "Surely he would have sensed this if I could recognize his own demon lineage without him telling me. Unless he kept such information to himself......" she thought. Be it as it may, her verbal dismissal did not account for the growing inner turmoil. Fed by this demonic bloodline known affectionately and infamously as the Berserker. "That's not possible, both of my parents were human as human can be..." Her eyes changed from gray to a flat black, before burning like hot coals. She knew their humanity because of how fragile they were, how the demon registrar identified them as nothing more the irreproachably human. She sighed, trying to quiet her unrest. "I won't accept this. There's something I need to end anyways. Then such things can be pondered." Ao murmured, looking to compartmentalize her emotions in logical fashion. Sharpening her focus in order to properly strategize how she would exterminate that monster. Oh how she would make him suffer so. This girl was in denial and that was fine she was too young to simply accept it. Dorothy sighed and just ignored her insistence that she was fully human and looked back towards the corpse. It was then that her sharpened ears heard something come from within the girl's mouth. She wanted to end something really bad. As she looked back Dorothy saw the same look on her face that she kept putting on every time she had stopped their conversation to think. She didn't want to but knew she should, after all Dorothy was older and this girl looked like she needed some help. She walked over to Aojiro and placed her hand on her's softly pulling her to sit on the ground beside her. "What is it that you need to end? I can see that you keep thinking about whatever this is constantly. It's eating away at you. Do you want to talk about this?" She spoke softly. God Dorothy sounded like a damn mother or something and she hated it. Aojiro's turbulent mind slowed as Dorothy beckoned her over. The older girl would then take Ao by the hand before sitting them down on the grass. Hearing genuine concern (even if a little forced at times), she contemplated whether or not she should spill the beans. "Well I need to avenge my family. My mother and father are dead; my brother alive but traumatized by our parents' death. As the only person my brother can truly lean on, I have to be strong for the both of us. And it sucks. Thanks to some sources I know who did the deed and their general location however. Once I find them, I won't leave enough of them for the crows to feed on." Ao's voice turned cold if not murderous at the end of this statement. Quite unexpected for a young woman of her age. Symbolically, the sky grew heavier with cloud cover, blocking out the sun and darkening the environment. Aojiro stood once more, her eyes taking on a stormy blue coloration as she looked at the increasingly hostile atmosphere. Her heart remained unafraid at the frightening sight; if anything it proved oddly comforting to the girl. "I can't wait to pay him back for every bit of pain he's caused us." she whispered. Dorothy sat bewildered at this girl's statement. 16 years old and she already had someone she wanted to rip to shreds. Dorothy couldn't help but compare this to Aojiro's demonic nature. She felt sympathy for those humans who were half demons and she wished on them the best lives they could lead. In her eyes they were cursed to be outcast and hurt though their lives, it was sad for her to watch. Demons on the other hand she felt no sorrow for. Based on all her research she had found only one demon to be in favor of humanity through her entire exorcism spree. She stood and wrapped her arms around the girl, hugging her close. "That must be horrible for you Ao." She spoke sadly, referring to her by an abbreviation of her name. "I can't imagine how you must feel right now." She felt pity for the girl. Alone in the world hunting demons for the opposite reason as her. Dorothy chose to do it one day and up and left her home. She chose to ignore happy moments with her family in lieu of demon research. This girl had no such choice, she was forced into hunting them out of her loss and lust for vengeance. All Dorothy could do was hug her close and apologize to the wounded teen. Aojiro was surprised when she felt the 19 year old's loving embrace. That three years could be such an impressive gap in maturity and coherence awed her. Then again, this woman was clearly human, but insisted that Ao possessed demon lineage. It occurred to her that perhaps her sensory skills could be turned inwards. Allowing her to detect whether this was all a fallacy. Though such an act would be somewhat challenging, Aojiro attempted it anyways. Her apprehension at what she would find turning into terror upon its discovery. Sure enough, a weak pulse could be found, one that grew stronger upon being discovered; it was unequivocally demon, and confirmed that SZ had been in fact withholding information. Yet the discovery of what she was hunting residing within her own system proved more damming. Shattering Ao's peace of mind. "No. No. NO. NO!" Ao roared, her magical aura manifesting from the girl's anguish. Thunder boomed overhead as the first drops of rain turned into a steady downpour. Any denial was crushed under this truth. "Why me...." she murmured, the rain above mixing with her own stream of tears. If anything was clear, the family she sought vengeance for was not her own. The bloodline whispering such a confirmation to the girl as she collapsed to her knees. Erasing any happy moments as she realized they were nothing more than strangers. "Why.." Ao asked to no one in particular, her aura winking out as the weather continued it's inclement fury. Broken as she thought about how to end it. Perhaps this Raikardo would kill her as she killed him. Ending such misery before it truly began. Dorothy kept hugging the girl as she felt a jump in her heart rate. A demonic aura bloomed from her and Dorothy jumped back, staring at Ao intently. She saw the pure magical aura crawl from her, the demonic nature of it warping the air in small ways. Dorothy realized Ao must have realized her own origins after she kept pressing the fact that she was a half demon. It was apparent that her aura itself was warping the weather. Throughout their conversation Dorothy had noticed the slight increase in stormy weather as they progressed. Now that power was in full swing, a pure uncontrolled storm of aggression localized around them. It died a little as the aura around the girl disappeared and she fell to her knees, crying. "It's ok Ao it's ok." She spoke softly as she fell to her knees and took the girls hand in her own, staring into her teary eyes. "I've met many like you before, being half demon is not easy but you can't let it destroy you. Your fate is not determined by who you were born as but what you chose to do. If anyone ever tries to deny you anything because of how you were born then you just ascend beyond them and maybe hit them if they're assholes about it. I was born a noble and yet here I am, disconnected from my family and a freelance exorcist. I wanted to do this and so I did it. It may not be the best example but I think you get the point. This all changes nothing except what you know, you're still you." Aojiro looked at Dorothy through her tear ridden gaze. "That's easier said then done. Everything I do will likely be tied to my demon inheritance. I'll be judged simply because half of me is despicable. But that's fine. I should probably find out who my real parents are." she tried for a smile but it fell flat. "Looks like the time has come; I'm going to clear out the underbelly of society." she could sense a slumbering darkness within her slowly awakening, baring a nightmarish grin before lazy turning over. Ao looked at her clenched hand, feeling her blood singing for a war of attrition. "I plan on doing more than simply hitting them." Aojiro stood once more, surprisingly steady on her feet after the mental breakdown she had just committed. Though the girl continued to fracture on the inside even as she appeared externally calm. Wiping away the drying tears, she sighed. "He's waiting out there. And I'm going to end him. But he's just a stepping stone. Maybe I'll be lucky and die in the process of this underbelly purging." Ao laughed harshly at such a thought. "Though something tells me that I'll survive everything they throw at me. Such bad karma I have." The slow awakening cause the woman to change slightly, her eyes refocusing as wolf gray while her hair lightened to a shade of hazelnut brown. "Don't come after me." Ao said, staring Dorothy down before turning. Something changed as she stood there, gazing in the direction where her target lie in wait. The landscape seemed to lean away from Aojiro as if to warn any passerby that she was a danger to their well-being. Dangerous. A half-breed monster. An abomination. Her smile was bitter as she recognized this small detail. "Looks like the world's already rejecting me." she said aloud. This was not good at all, her emotions were to unstable right now. Her demonic side had just awakened an killing was already on her mind. Dorothy dashed forwards sliding to a stop in front of Aojiro. "You cannot go anywhere but home." She shouted, her eyes focused on Ao. "You need to think for a second here. The the world isn't rejecting you you're rejecting yourself. I don't know what the hell you're rambling on about but you need to take a breather. Rash decisions under stress are never good." The older girl stood before Aojiro, the two of them stopped in this moment. "I've seen to many like you walk off to their own demises, polluting themselves and being ripped to shreds. I'm not going to let another one of you be claimed by the hands of corruption. So if you truly wish to go on a killing spree then you better be prepared to get past me Aojiro. I'm not letting you fall." Dorothy's words escaped her lips without a hint of hesitation. If this girl truly wanted to go on and destroy herself then she would need to get past her. "Why would I not reject myself? I'm an abomination. I SHOULD NOT EXIST." Ao snarled. "Besides, you don't even know where my demon lineage stems from. How do I know that if the wrong name is unearthed you won't turn away? Seeing the way my luck has held, something bad is likely headed my way." she paused for a second before staring at the world once more. "Are you blind? Because look at the world around you. See the way the trees angle themselves away from me? See how the path before me is bare? Nature itself senses I'm anomalous. Not a living thing can be found around us. If such an unbiased source has already passed judgement on me, what am I to expect from fickle, inconsistent humans? Or spiteful, vendetta filled demons? Nothing. So, GET. OUT. OF. MY. WAY." Aojiro stated, her aura flaring once more as she bared a nightmarish grin. "I have hell-spawn and satan worshipers to exterminate. And you're preventing me from accomplishing my task." She then released a point-blank storm devil's rage at Dorothy. "You're not letting me fall? Dearie, I've already fallen. And you were quite helpful in that process." she smirked before dashing to the left. True to her word, even the grass beneath her feet sought other land, leaving lifeless earth for Aojiro to walk on. "Your bloodline has nothing to do with it, whatever demon you come from changes nothing." Dorothy replied. She stared at the girl as she kept pouring out her self defeating words. It was true the the world seemed to want her to stay away but that was just more of a reason she could not leave her be. "I will not let you leave till your head is clear." Dorothy shouted, her scythe drawn and her eyes blazing red. She eyed the ferocious wave of storm magic bearing down on her and placed her hand before her. The attack hit with full force but only the force from it seemed to damage the landscape. The rest of it disappeared in her hand only to be shot back at Aojiro. Her magic was raw power so why not use it against her. It was a well known fact that slayers cannot eat their own magic. "I think it does." Ao grinned, her smile feral as she watched her attack returned. It was a shame that Dorothy wasn't paying attention though. Having already cleared the woman's left, Aojiro took off, leaving her rebounded attack to plow through the nearby forest. She wasn't sure how fast the older girl was, but knew that within her guild Aojiro was marked as one of the fastest. It helped that she could match the resident High Speed expert of Northern Light. While she considered heading straight for true target, Ao recognized Doro's adamant pursuit. Deciding that losing her would be a better option so she wouldn't interfere. While she didn't carry the emotional baggage from earlier, the girl considered Raikardo's execution an important step in her underworld crushing plan. Methodically working her way up the food chain. Her smile darkened with hell-creating intent. Speeding through the landscape while throwing zig zags to confuse her pursuant. "I figured she would try to outrun me," Dorothy thought as she felt the girl fly past her. With a quick movement she held her scythe infant of her and began spinning it slowly letting it stop with the blade resting on the ground. "Stop." Was all she spoke as the world slowed to an infinite crawl, time had stopped. Dorothy dashed through the stopped time until she reached Aojiro who was just about to jump from the ground. She stared at the girl's unmoving body, suspended in time. "This is for the best." She spoke to no one in particular. She then took out a knife and slashed the back of each of Aojiro's legs. It was cut in such a way that she could not move her legs but was not fatal, considering the new healing powers Aojiro would have. Dorothy assumed it would be at least a day. Though just for good measure she also removed two magic sealing cuffs from her bag and bound Ao's hand. Then with a spin of her scythe in the opposite direction time would resume with her stood behind the girl. It astounded her. One moment Aojiro was flying past the woman, having left her presumably in the dust. Yet in the next interval she found herself face-first in the ground, her legs unresponsive and her hands securely bound. "What the fuck?" she snarled, eventually attaining a sitting position. The girl rarely cursed, making this a surprising response. More astonishing was the figure overhead; it was none other than Dorothy. Aojiro's calculations told her she held a significant speed advantage, yet here was the pursuant. Her logical assumption was a powerful variant of Spatial Magic. That she had no recollection of her current predicament told Aojiro that it had to be a type that manipulated time to a great extent. Causing her facial expression to sour. It appeared she had much to learn about this world still. "Why won't you leave me alone? I don't know you. I only met you a few hours ago at best. So why do you refuse seek other things? I don't recall asking for your input or interference. Thus, it would behoove you to remove yourself from this situation now." Ao retorted, her wolf gray eyes blazing before morphing into sapphire flames. "You involved me the moment you decided to go on a rampage. I don't quite care if you're out to erase dark guilds and demon worshippers but that's not what's going to happen. You'll kill a few sure but what's most likely to happen is your death. Demons and their worshippers along with dark guilds are extremely dangerous people. They won't hesitate to take you and direct you for their own sick means." Dorothy spoke from the heart, she knew of these travesties. Aojiro wasn't the first half demon to try to go on a rampage. "No lets say they're all no match for you and you kill them all well guess what happens. You're a sixteen year old who's in extreme emotional dismay being influenced by a new demonic power and you just killed a ton of people. That quite literally spells out and immediate descent into darkness. If you continue on this path right now all that awaits is a demon or death." Dorothy moved in front of the girl and looked into her blazing eyes with her luminescent red ones, awaiting the girl's response. "Oh I'm sorry. Should I return to toiling among light guilds like a good little human?" Aojiro retorted, her voice bitingly sarcastic. That her legs refused to move continued to irritate her. Deciding to see what the issue was, she recognized the placement of such slash marks. Apparently Dorothy wanted her to stay her a while. "Bitch." she muttered under her breath. "Maybe I'm meant to descend into darkness. Maybe this life I led all this time was a ruse. Besides, you wouldn't understand, being a human capable of tossing aside her life of luxury for selfish interests. It never occurred that maybe, just maybe I didn't know about my demon heritage. You know it's something that people wouldn't advertise even if they did. But you were like, let me spring this information on the girl I just met." Her words continued to pack significant bite. Anyone could tell that she was hurting badly, but emotionally and mentally. Her physical injuries however were already beginning to show signs of healing. "So you're telling me that I don't have a right to be selfish? That I should return to my guild and continue to be the supporting, loving, ignorant little twit I was? That's rich coming from someone like you." she continued. Dorothy sat there stewing as the girl chewed her out for apparently daring to stop her and for caring. In an eruption Dorothy began speaking angrily, her the concern in her voice was replaced with anger. "How dare you even assume to know me. I've buried more of your kind than I can count. I felt sympathy for you and decided to tell you rather than you freak out in some moment of emotion and kill someone." She screamed, her mind flashing back to her own past. "My best friend tried to kill me in an outburst of his, he was a half demon. He was killed on the spot, his parents didn't even mourn for him. That's the reason I care about half demons, they have a choice and my purpose with every one of them I meet is to give them choice." She finished, walking over to Aojiro and undoing her cuffs before placing two bandages over her wounds. "These will have you wounds healed in about ten minutes." She spoke as she sat next to the girl. "If you really want to go on a dark guild killing spree then fine, I can't stop you. My purpose is to make sure your mind is sound when you make that decision. I don't want rash impulses to kill others like they did my friend." Dorothy spoke, sitting on the ground with a small tear in her eye. The impact of Dorothy's narrative stunned Aojiro into silence. "Oh." she managed finally. It explained why she took this issue personally, particularly Ao's breakdown. That also made some of what Aojiro muttered earlier appear extremely insensitive. "I'm sorry about what I said earlier. I had no right to make such assumptions. However, I can't go back like this. Not after attaining such burdensome knowledge. Even if I managed to not utter a word relating to this, I'd still feel the information baring down on me. At some point I would slip up, and no one knows what would happen then. I've already seen how humans deal with demons. Such observations make pessimistic about their feelings for hybrids. Only seeing me as that loathsome type infringing on their utopian society. At best they would ignore me and make my existence miserable. At worst I'd turn up dead. Looks like a decision that has me between a rock and a hard place." she paused slightly, feeling depression creeping in. "Though at the end of the day, there are answers waiting to be found. And I'm afraid those aren't in the guild I call home, regardless of its independent mindset. If I have to create a killing field to find the enlightenment I seek so be it. The world would be better off without those scum anyways." Aojiro had a sneaking suspicion that she would relish such slaughters, repulsing the girl slightly. Yet exciting her in equal fashion. "If that is what you wish then do it." Dorothy spoke before reaching into her bag an taking out a syringe. This will temporarily suppress your demonic side. Use it if you ever need to calm yourself down." She spoke as she placed the syringe in Aojiro's hand. "The only real advice I can give you now is don't let society define who you are Ao." The older girl spoke giving the younger one another hug. Before helping her to her feet. "I'm off to slay some more demons. I hope our paths may cross once again." A soft smile plastered on her face. Then with a wink she blasted off, her legs carrying her off into the woods. "I sure hope what I did toady was right, it's never easy to help hybrids." She thought her mind remembering the many others she attempted to help. Aojiro stared at the syringe in her hands. Given her dark thoughts earlier, it appeared the syringe would be needed sooner rather than later. "Looks like we'll be doing the same thing Doro." she pondered aloud. It appeared such a meeting would come to pass in her mind, when she didn't know, but it would arrive soon enough. Causing her to smile back slightly as the older girl shot off into the distance, that wink staying with Aojiro. "Well, I suppose we can't keep him waiting now." Aojiro said, sprinting in the direction of the first person on her hit-list. Though he would soon become nothing more than a number in her mind. Nevertheless, the sun began to set as the two went their separate ways, the same goal in mind but with different yet equally effective approaches. A curious matter indeed. Category:GA Complete